Many cities and states are now looking to tackle the epidemic of veteran homelessness nationwide by dealing with the issue within their own borders. Such a project will soon get under way in New Orleans, where dozens of veterans currently live on the streets.

A New Orleans nonprofit is working with a local real estate firm to build a 5.5-acre housing project for veterans of the most recent Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts who need lifelong rehab, according to a report from the New Orleans Times-Picayune. Currently, the block where these apartments will be built is green space after a canal breach in 2005 damaged all of its buildings, and the goal is to keep as much of that green space as possible and incorporate it into the development of this property.

The area will have nearly 80 apartments available to disabled veterans and their families, ranging in size from one to three bedrooms, the report said. In all, 70 percent of these slots will be affordable housing, with the remaining 30 percent being market-rate apartments. The good news for the veterans who will one day live there is that the property is adjacent to a new VA hospital in New Orleans that should be open by the end of 2016.

In all, half the properties will be rented to veterans who have physical or mental disabilities as a result of their service, the report said. The other half will be rented to older people who agree to volunteer six hours per week helping those neighbors in some way, be it babysitting, driving vets to the doctor's office, and so on.

This kind of assistance could go a very long way toward helping disabled veterans feel as though there are people they can lean on for help when they need it. Many such organizations exist across the country.

Retired Air Force Col. Michael F. Welch has been approached by so many overwhelmed veterans expressing their thanks that he finally has a way of dealing with it, which isn't to say he doesn't appreciate their gratitude. As overseer of the Department of Veterans Affairs' Paralympic program, Welch is plenty familiar with how difficult living through a life after service with a disability sustained in combat can be.

The Washington Post reported that, as the specialist in charge of the VA program, Welch is responsible for providing grants to sports that assist disable veterans, as well as getting stipends to those veteran athletes talented enough to attend international competitions like the Paralympics. 

"They tell me, 'You don't know what you've done for my life,'" Welch relayed to The Post. 

Adaptive sports allow veterans to exercise, build muscle, connect with their fellow brothers and sisters in arms, and perhaps most importantly, find a new role for themselves. Welch talked about some of the athletes had contemplated suicide before they found an answer in sports. 

Welch told The Post about a blind Navy officer who has gone on to win medals in swimming, and four veterans who have suffered traumatic brain injury but are nonetheless on their way to represent the U.S. in soccer at the Paralympic games. 

Some wounded veterans have taken their athletic exploits even further. Fox 13 in Salt Lake City reported how more than 80 wheelchair-using veterans have been given the chance to attend ski and snowboard camps at Park City Mountain Resort. 

Coaches there will teach veterans to ski regardless of injury, hopefully instilling a new passion for the sport by adapting it to their physical requirements. Spending time with other veterans while doing it certainly doesn't hurt either. 

One of the big obstacles that many veterans across the country unfortunately know all too well is that they may not always have access to the health care they need. Luckily, the state of New Jersey recently passed a law that should help them clear some of those hurdles.

The law, known as A-3749, will require the state's Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs to establish a program to help veterans get to their medical appointments when they have conditions related to their service, according to a report from the New Jersey state house. Specifically, the state will reimburse those veterans for the travel costs they take on out of pocket to make those appointments.

"Many veterans are unable to take advantage of helpful treatment programs in New Jersey because of the difficulty in arranging transportation," said Legislative Assembly Democrat Pamela Lampitt, who represents Camden and Burlington. "This law will promote transportation assistance to veterans in order to ensure our veterans have the access to quality care they deserve."

This kind of help may go a long way for many veterans in the state, and could also inspire similar programs in other states as well. That, in turn, could be invaluable to many veterans with health issues who may be struggling financially.

Millions of veterans across the country became small business owners after they left the service, and a lot of them have success specifically because of the skills they learned while serving. To that end, national convenience store chain 7-Eleven has taken aim at helping would-be entrepreneurs achieve their dreams.

For the second year in a row, 7-Eleven is holding its Operation: Take Command contest, in which one veteran in the U.S. will be given a fee-free franchise of the store that he or she can run on their own, according to a report from the Lockport Union-Sun and Journal. The value of such a prize can be as much as $190,000.

There will be several steps to the contest itself, with a winner announced in June, but sign-ups close in late February, the report said. Near the end, a group of 25 contestants will be asked to submit videos highlighting why they should win, and as many as seven will advance from that group. Lastly, three finalists will be interviewed by the company's franchise department before a winner is chosen.

These kinds of contests may help veterans achieve some of their personal dreams, and entrepreneurship in general can be very empowering for those who return from service.

It can sometimes be hard to take, but not every veteran has a family around to honor them when they pass. Thankfully, Californians have proven definitively that when family can't do it, strangers will.

On Wednesday, strangers gathered at the Sacramento Valley National Cemetery to attend a ceremony honoring 169 fallen veterans whose remains were never claimed by friends or kin. Under dozens of American flags snapping proudly in the wind, people the veterans never knew made sure that their service wasn't forgotten.

According to Fox 40, Sacramento's cemetery hosts this type of commemorative service several times throughout the year, but usually on a much smaller scale. Craig Allen, operations foreman at the cemetery, pointed to the laudatory efforts of the Missing in America Project – a group that locates veterans without families – for the expanded scope of the ceremony. 

"They actively sought out these veterans that have somehow not been accorded the honors that they deserve," Allen told Fox 40. 

Three of the veterans buried on Wednesday who were found by MIAP were from or near Napa County, the Napa Valley Register reported. Two of them – Waightsel Lumpkin and Keith Sipma – were Army veterans who served during World War II. The third was Quenton Nickell, who served in the Army during the Vietnam War. 

Craig Hall, another Army veteran, was appointed Napa County's very first veterans remains officer last summer. He worked with the county sheriff's office and MIAP to locate the three men, who were taken to the national cemetery via procession. 

There, along with all the other fallen, the Register reported that they received a full memorial service complete with rifle volleys, taps, and a presentation of the American flag to a veteran in attendance. 

Some missions last a day, some a month, some a lifetime. For Veterans on Patrol, helping homeless veterans is their vocation 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The group just recently established a new camp in Mesa, Arizona, ABC 15 reported, that bears the signs of a military operation – rigid tents and an American flag.

"Homeless veterans coming – when they see military structures like this – it's a familiarity with them," Lewis Arthur, co-founder of Veterans on Patrol, told the news channel. Arthur said that he hoped veterans seeking shelter would soon find the tents stocked with donations from the Arizona community.

"So, if a vet comes walking down this street at 3 o'clock in the morning, he'll see the flag lit up at nighttime in the camp and he knows he can walk over here to get food, water and a blanket," Arthur continued.

While Mesa may be the group's newest location, it certainly isn't their first. According to Tucson News Now, back in December Veterans on Patrol was going out of its way to put a roof over the head of homeless veterans who had somehow slipped through the cracks in their life after service and who weren't receiving aid.

"In Tucson, we've found 18 veterans so far that are either not in the system or the VA themselves are looking for them," Arthur said at the time.

Mesa's camp now brings the total Veterans on Patrol sites in Arizona to four. Operating with a team of dedicated volunteers, the group posts requests for the items it needs to Facebook, then relies on donations from the community to fulfill them. But there's more to the operation than just handing out supplies.

"Once we develop a relationship with them, if they need help transitioning, we'll help them," Arthur told ABC 15. "If they want to stay homeless, we'll gear them up good." 

Homeless and low-income veterans are a group that people overwhelmingly want to help in any way they can, and cities and states nationwide are now doing more to make sure those servicemembers are receiving help in the form of permanent housing. The state of South Dakota is just one of those entities, but it is finally poised to take a huge step forward in this regard.

Three years ago, the South Dakota state legislature signed a bill that allocated about $41 million – including $17 million from the VA – to a home for veterans who are struggling financially, according to a report from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, television station KELO. Now, after a lengthy period of construction, the facility is just about ready to open.

The aim of the Michael J. Fitzmaurice South Dakota Veterans Home, located in Hot Springs, South Dakota, with more than 100 beds, is to take care of older veterans in particular, who may not have the financial wherewithal to appropriately take care of themselves any more, the report said. It will replace an older, smaller facility that had a similar goal.

"Everybody will move in here, so most of what's remaining of the old campus will be shuttered, for lack of a better term, for the time being – until we move into a different phase, and after our new construction is complete," Brad Richardson, superintendent of the facility, told the station. "And as I finish up more of my suites, I'll move more and more of my staff into [the older facility]. Long term, a floor previously used for administration in the building will be turned into a museum area."

Many veterans may be able to get some sort of assistance from government agencies or private organizations in their area, and often they just need to know where to look for help when and if they need it.

Many cities across the country are pouring money, attention, and love into efforts to help get homeless veterans off the streets. Meanwhile, a number of tribes of Native Americans have similar problems in dealing with this issue, but a few in the American Southwest recently received some federal funds to help them address it.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, along with the VA, recently awarded some $6 million to 26 tribes and associated groups to help them tackle homelessness among veterans, according to a report from the Associated Press. That includes $1.1 million for tribes in Arizona and New Mexico alone.

The tribes in the Southwest that will be receiving a share of that money include the Navajo and Hopi in Arizona, as well as the San Carlos Apache and Tohono O'odham, the report said. The Zuni Pueblo in New Mexico also will get some of those funds.

In all, the above-mentioned tribes are expected to be able to help get 80 homeless vets off the streets with housing assistance and vouchers, as well as new support services, the report said. These grants were allowable under new changes to the law.

Fortunately, these kinds of efforts often go a long way toward helping veterans in need, and whether it's tribal governments, cities, or states, the impact of helping even 80 can be immeasurable. Veterans who are in need of some sort of assistance, whether it's related to housing or just getting through the day sometimes, may be able to reach out to a number of organizations in their areas, either governmental or private. There is almost always going to be someone who is able to lend a hand, and often all veterans have to do is ask.

Though their incarceration rate is lower than that of the civilian population, veterans struggling in their life after service sometimes wind up on the wrong side of the law. In the past, that's meant one thing – jail time. But in Johnson County, Kansas, an alternative has been introduced that could, with time, have ramifications nationwide.

According to The Kansas City Star, the first of its kind Veterans Treatment Court will supervise and support troubled veterans through a diversion program with the assistance of a court staff and mentors.

"The idea is to evaluate those people to try to identify those with needs, and what we are looking for is people with PTSD, traumatic brain injury, with depression, with substance abuse issues," Judge Timothy McCarthy told KSHB in Kansas City. "These aren't the most serious crimes, these are lower level felonies and misdemeanors."

McCarthy was primarily responsible for the court's creation. The Star reported that he researched what would be required to establish it, then organized it, and now, he will hear cases involving veterans every other Wednesday afternoon.

Two main goals motivated McCarthy – getting veterans the help they need, and reducing the number of people serving time for low-level offenses. To avoid a jail sentence, accused veterans must commit to a 12- to 18-month program filled with drug and alcohol testing, court appearances and case-specific treatments. 

There have already been some success stories emerging from the courtroom. One of them comes from Joshua Boley, a former Marine who deployed three times in four years.

"It definitely saved me, and that's why I definitely believe it's going to save a lot of veterans' lives," Boley told KSHB. "I was in the regular court prior to this, and it didn't help me at all. I just kind of kept getting worse."

Now, surrounded by other veterans with experience undergoing the same trials, Boley and others like him have found a new path. 

Just one year ago, Cynthia Dias was a homeless veteran struggling in her life after service in Las Vegas. On Tuesday night, she was a special guest of First Lady Michelle Obama at President Barack Obama's final Sate of the Union address.

"It was an outstanding speech," Dias told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Dias was reportedly captivated by what the President had to say regarding improvements made to veteran care over the last few years, and the long road still ahead.

Attending the speech wasn't Dias' only objective, however. She and Arnold Stalk, founder of Veterans Village – a non-profit former motel in Las Vegas with more than 120 housing units where, according to Huffington Post, Dias lives and works as a voluntary advocate for homeless veterans – both traveled to the White House to meet with Valerie Jarrett, Obama's senior adviser, and the first lady.

A nurse who served in the Vietnam War and who subsequently suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, Dias is one of the many veterans who found long-term residences following the Mayor's Challenge, an effort spearheaded by Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden to end veteran homelessness.

Dias and Stalk also met with Julian Castro, secretary of U.S. Housing and Urban Development, to discuss VASH vouchers – a joint program between HUD and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Stalk pointed to Dias as the embodiment of what the program can do to improve the fortunes of the chronically homeless.

"She was great backup for me today," Stalk relayed to the Review-Journal. 

Working together, the two veterans advocates relayed the same message to lawmakers – with affordable, stable housing and access to health care, homeless veterans can turn their lives around and do incredible things. For evidence, look no further than Cynthia Dias.